Customer Reviews

Little Creatures

5 star:		(23)
4 star:		(17)
3 star:		(5)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Little Creatures is one of my all-time favorite CDs. I know a lot of Talking Heads fans consider this album a little too pop-oriented, but I love every song on here. This is particularly good music to sing along with, yet it still has plenty of quintessential David Byrne vocal sounds to distinguish it from non-Talking Heads music. I still hear And She Was on the radio from time to time, proving its longevity as a quirky, fun track, but for some unexplainable reason, nobody ever seems to play Road to Nowhere anymore. That was really the song that made me a TH fan, and I'll never forget the video with David Byrne running nonstop in the corner the whole time. Stay Up Late is another cool song that got some air play in its day; it's not a song you would want your babysitter to listen to while she is at your house, but it's just a typically fun, unique Talking Heads song.

All of the remaining songs are almost as good as the single releases. Give Me Back My Name, The Lady Don't Mind, Perfect World, and Walk It Down aren't spectacular, but they are quite enjoyable. I especially love the chorus of The Lady Don't Mind, and the last verse of Perfect World features vintage David Byrne vocals. Television Man comes closest to the earlier, more traditionally untraditional Talking Heads sound, and it features a great stretch of David Byrne vocal gymnastics. As enjoyable as all of these songs are, though, none compare to the song Little Creatures. It has a great flow to it, with interesting lyrics, and it shows how talented a singer David Byrne really is. The entire album has a fullness and flow that most albums just do not have; I never skip any of the tracks when I play this CD. This group's forehead-slapping music is great, but sometimes it is nice just to relax to calmer music such as this disc offers. Clocking in at just under forty minutes in length, Little Creatures is not terribly long, especially by today's standards, but it is enjoyable from start to finish. Some TH fans might consider this album a musical road to nowhere by this eclectic band, but in my opinion Little Creatures proves that the journey is often times the best part of the trip.

I adore Remain In Light, enjoy Speaking In Tongues, love Psycho Killer. But LITTLE CREATURES is my favourite Heads album. I know many Heads' fans don't, because LC doesn't sound like anything else they ever did. It's melodic, bouncy, bright and optimistic. Little Creatures is like the Velvets' LOADED, a pop record made by an avant-rock band.

Reportedly, David Byrne was in love (with Adelle Lutz) when he composed these tunes. That's evident from the get-go. And She Was kicks off the album on a note of joy and energy, not dark brooding like Burning Down The House. From there, the record detours into kids & family (Creatures of Love, Stay Up Late) and more love (the wonderful The Lady Don't Mind).

The hooks are catchy and the harmonies are delicious. Further, every song moves. You can dance to this. There's no filler. The sequencing is smart -- the record is assembled like one unified piece.

LITTLE CREATURES isn't everyone's cup of tea, but who says a band has to sound the same on every album?

I still miss them every day, and this album (along with Speaking In Tongues) is one of the reasons why. Great pop songs, quirky lyrics, funky melodies -- full-bodied music. The four of them came together to do great stuff and, afterward, on their own, none of them have ever been as good again.

I actually came across this album a couple years ago, but at the time I only really payed attention to the big hit, "And She Was." Then I checked it out again, and realized that each of these songs is catchy and solid. Sure, it's not as quirky or goofy as moments in older releases, but that doesn't mean it doesn't have greatness. It does. The album especially has a good album-ending punch with "Television Man" and "Road to Nowhere." "Road" was actually pretty unconventional compared to the remainder of the album even though it was one of the hits from the album. And yes, David Byrne sings more mid-range here. He actually does sound British at points, like in the chorus of "Creatures of Love." Quirky lyrics like "I've seen sex and I think it's okay" and "I wanna make him stay up all night" make the album memorable. It may not be an elitist favorite but it still connects to younger people, including me, a fan who isn't even 20 yet.

In the beginning of the film 'Stop Making Sense', we see a lone David Byrne walking up to a large stage with a tape recorder. "There's a tape I want you to hear", he says, and plays the monotonic rhythm of 'Psycho Killer'. As the concert goes on, more musicians join him on stage ¡V first the core band members, and then percussionists, guitar players and backup singers, until finally the stage is crowded.

This, in a nutshell, is the story of the Talking Heads' development up to the point of 'Stop Making Sense'. Under the watchful eye of master-producer Brian Eno (whose amazing list of collaborators also includes David Bowie, Devo, U2, John Cale and Robert Fripp, among many others) the band grew from the shady art-rock semi-punk band that created such anti-culture semi-hits as 'Psycho Killer' and 'Love „» Building On Fire', through electronics and ethnic influences, into the avant-garde new-wave supergroup that created masterpieces like 'Fear of Music' and 'Remain In Light', a process that reached its peak after Eno left the group, under Byrne's direction, with 'Speaking in Tongues' and 'Stop Making Sense'.

'Little Creatures' is considered by many fans and critics to be the beginning of the end for Talking Heads, and where they gave in to commercialism. 'Little Creatures' is often underappreciated and misunderstood, especially by avid fans of the Heads, because it was a decisive change in direction for them. It's not in fact the sound of the band giving up their influences; on the contrary, it shows them accepting new influences while also returning to their roots. 'Little Creatures' is a return to the core four-member band, and it puts much more focus than before on the band's instrumental prowess and on Byrne's songwriting than on orchestration and production. On the other hand, it's also much more melodic than anything they've done before ¡V and from that comes the misconception that it was commercial and 'pop' ¡V and with the experience and maturity they've gained over their years with Eno, 'Little Creatures' is much more focused and intelligible than their early singles or 'Talking Heads '77'.

The focus of 'Little Creatures' is on the songs themselves ¡V and they're all gems. Certainly more optimistic and bouncy than anything they've done before ¡V Byrne is no longer dying to show the world how pissed off he is ¡V the songs are still filled with Byrne's witty and sarcastic sense of humor, though the sarcasm is much more subtle than before. 'Television Man' and 'Give Me Back My Name' are songs that perhaps have more of the earlier Heads in them, but 'And She Was' is a perfect love song, and it's a joy, from the wonderful kick that starts off the song and the album. 'Creatures of Love', 'Walk It Down' and 'The Lady Don't Mind' are all gorgeous tunes with lovely lyrics courtesy of Mr. Byrne, and can be described only as intelligent pop ¡V pop by definition but not by essence, as it's all melodic and cheerful, and yet far too intricate and subtle to ever truly become radio hits. 'Stay Up Late' ¡V ironically, the only song on the album that ever got any real airtime ¡V is the meanest and most sarcastic tune on the album, but like the others, it's all with a smile and a wink. 'Road to Nowhere' is the track that closes the album and is arguably the best ¡V and also one of the best tracks the Heads have ever put out. It's a masterpiece from beginning to end, and like the rest of the album, it shows the Heads for the brilliant musicians they are better than any other of their albums, save maybe 'True Stories'.

It's easy to see why the Talking Heads' most fanatic fans might scoff at 'Little Creatures', but it's an inseparable part of their work and one of their best albums, that should not be missed. It might also be their most accessible, and I would recommend it for anyone who's after some good music ¡V though I'd still suggest starting your Heads experience with the more intricate sounds of 'Stop Making Sense', which is a truly irresistible experience. The Heads' work can easily be divided into three parts ¡V the first is represented by 'The Name of This Band is Talking Heads', now finally available on CD; the second, by 'Stop Making Sense'. 'Little Creatures' is the third, and you would be wise to give it a chance, or more than one.

A long-time favourite of mine, "Little Creatures" is, and probably will remain, for me the finest slice of pure pop ever made. Though many would criticise the Talking Heads for doing away with much of the experimentation evident on their previous three studio albums ("Fear Of Music", "Remain In Light" and "Speaking In Tongues"), this stripping back allowed David Byrne's unque lyrical wit and great intelligence to come to the fore. Never before or since has pure pop been delivered with such hyperintelligent lyrics and sheer directness.

In addition, the sound quality was a big improvement on previous Talking Heads CDs - especially with "Speaking In Tongues", digital remastering of those is long overdue.

The opener "And She Was", a brilliantly-written tale of a woman who lost her way through drug problems, set the tone - reducing most of the instrumentation of "Stop Making Sense", Byrne was able to produce accessible music that always surprises the listener - like almost all great musicians. The gentle "Give Me Back My Name" and "Creatures Of Love" show David Byrne examining the paradoxes of life and human existence, and always questioning what most people find seemingly obvious ("Doctor, doctor, tell me what I am" being typical). "Lady Don't Mind" was a wonderful romantic tale in which Byrne always surprises the listener with his inability to describe a lover.

"Perfect World" and "Stay Up Late" moved a little toward the funky rhythms of previos albums, and Byrne was effortless once more in his tales of everyday family life, especially on the latter song, which was and remains the most wonderful description of a young child ever committed to disc. "Walk It Down" and "Television Man" took Byrne's lyrical genuis into much more serious terrain, and moved into even harder rhythms, with Chris Frantz rock-steady all though. "Road To Nowhere", the final song on the album, was less brittle but showed Byrne's wonderful sense of irony even more than the previous efforts, resulting in another worthy hit single.

"Little Creatures" has been scarcely ever rivalled as a slice of pure pop. A recording that one can listen to easily over and over without becoming tired, and a unique combination of accessibility and intelligence.

To date (1985), Little Creatures is Talking Heads worst Post-Punk/New Wave album, and their best Pop album. I guess they decided to stop speaking in tongues, and start speaking in, gosh, "melody." For the first time, I can actually sing along to songs like `Little Creatures' and `Road To Nowhere.' The material is catchy (Television Man), bouncing (Perfect World), and funny (Stay Up Late). Surprisingly, the vocal choruses are "pretty" (And She Was, Creatures Of Love). The old "ever present" driving bass guitar rhythms are still here, and unless David Byrne hired a ringer, Tina Weymouth has never sounded more innovative (Give Me Back My Name, The Lady Doesn't Mind). `Give Me Back My Name' and `The Lady Don't Mind' are weird and spooky enough to remind me that I'm still listening to the Talking Heads, and not Hanson. And isn't the concept of `Little Creatures' (no, not spiders, but "kids") bizarre? The album answers the terrifying question, "What would happen if I let David Byrne babysit my 3-year old?" The answer - "I wanna make him stay up all night" (Stay Up Late). Talking Heads followers might say that the avant garde of riffs and grooves have "sold out." Bologna - what could be more subversive than playing with rug rats?

I've gone back and rediscovered the brilliance that was Talking Heads now as a forty year old adult and found that I may have been wrong about "Little Creatures", which was actually the first of their albums I bought as a new release back in 1985; I had ignored "Stop Making Sense" when it was on the charts and had only become aware of the band the year before. Amusing anecdote is that "Little Creatures" was released the summer I was on a student exchange trip to Germany and the minute someone told me it had hit the stores I went out & found a copy on cassette, which I still have.

Back then things were different, and they were one of THE bands to follow in my group of artsy-musician urban angstmeisters. At the time I thought it was a pretty cool if unimaginative record & literally listened to it nonstop for a few weeks while traveling around Europe. When I got back to the states and would play the album for my buddies I was somewhat dismayed to hear their opinion that the band had "sold out", and amongst the hip, in-crowd the record very quickly fell out of favor even while it sold briskly to more mainstream listeners. But hearing the big songs (the annoying "And She Was" & "Road To Nowhere") out in the college bars suggested that by golly they HAD sold out, even if the music was still pretty decent.

Then came "True Stories" and it became clear that David Byrne had gone pop, and the rest of the band had gone with him. Boo hoo. "Wild Wild Life"'s success as a single was sort of the last straw and I more or less gave up on Talking Heads as a functioning unit until "Naked", by which time it was too late. By 1989 the group had stopped touring, split up for all intents & purposes, and I never even got to see them live. The disappointment is still tremendous.

One of the unfortunate after-effects of that disappointment was that I turned my back on Talking Heads' pop era -- to this day I have never owned my own copy of the "True Stories" album, even if I liked the movie -- and the greatest victim was probably "Little Creatures" which I literally could not stand for many, many years. Aside from the mind boggling 12 inch remix of "Lady Don't Mind" (which can be found on the newer UK import versions of the CD, the recommended version to buy) and the brilliant "Television Man", which has always been one of my favorite Talking Heads songs, listening to "Little Creatures" made my liver twitch. I put it away and did my best to forget about it for more than 20 years, managing to do a pretty good job it.

That's because listening to it now as a grown adult, and with the benefit of hindsight due to being able to look back at Talking Heads' ENTIRE career now in 2008 and after their being inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame (2004), it's pretty clear that "Little Creatures" played a very important if misunderstood -- by me, at any rate -- role in their evolution from an edgy post punk art rock band into a cultural powerhouse who's music transcended mere considerations like genres or commercial appeal vs. underground aesthetic.

My opinion on the album now, 20 years after, is that it is actually a pretty decent record that just happens to have a couple of ultra-annoying songs. Specifically the opening "And She Was", as annoying of a pop single that has ever been heard, and "Creatures Of Love", a country flavored ode to getting laid on a regular basis & managing to find love at the same time, which is easily my choice for Most Awful Talking Heads Song Ever. I even managed to dislike "Road To Nowhere" while it was a popular favorite though I must say that there is something special going on in the song ... Perhaps a profound self realization that the band itself was on both a metaphoric and literal Road To Nowhere, and that it was probably time for them to end their association. Listening to it now sort of sends a chill down one's spine as David Byrne's lyrics sort of tell the story of how it all came crumbling down.

Other tracks however remain openly brilliant: "Television Man", "Lady Don't Mind", the creepy "Walk It Town", the disarmingly domesticated "Perfect World" and "Stay Up Late", even "Give Me Back My Name" which seems to be David Byrne asking for his privacy back after becoming a pop culture superstar. Come to think of it, that's the entire album, and even with the annoying cuts (as well as Byrne's lyrical fixation on having been domesticated by the love of his life, costume designer Adelle Lutz) are actually quite listenable compared to all the crap I had to put up with working in record stores for ten years. "Little Creatures" isn't Talking Heads' strongest hour, but weak Talking Heads is still better than 99.9% of the punk/rock/pop ever composed, so you can do a lot worse. It is a very difficult record to dislike & I recommend it without hesitation to anyone with an interest.

One subject that I see a lot of folks commenting on in regards to Talking Heads is trying to pick a "first CD" recommendation for young listeners who would like to find out what the fuss is all about with this band. While it was a commercial success I wouldn't choose "Little Creatures" but would nod towards either their early minimalist masterpiece "More Songs About Buildings And Food" or the critical heavyweight, "Speaking In Tongues", which really broke open the floodgates for them. "Little Creatures" is probably for later on once you've gotten used to David Byrne's histrionics and become comfortable with the band's sound. By then you'll also have a better feel for why it was so disappointing to fans at the time compared to that which came before it, even if now 20 years down the road it's sounding pretty good again.

4/5

You know, when I first heard about this album I was ready and willing to rip it to pieces. I mean, a pop album? From Talking Heads? Yeah, that's right. It's their equivalent of Loaded by the Velvet Underground: proof they could've made good pop if they had chose to, they just never chose to. And besides, there's plenty of the group's personality here - as on the jumpy "Perfect World", and on "The Lady Don't Mind", which goes from a Pink Floyd-influenced intro to a full-on dance track. Anyway, there were several minor hits here: "And She Was" is pure catchy hummable fun; "Stay Up Late", about a perverted babysitter (At least that's my take) is fun bouncy piano-pop with wonderful guitar parts; "Walk it Down", despite having annoying keyboards, is still pretty funky and besides it has great lyrics; "Road to Nowhere" is enjoyably jerky and has a nice militant rhythm, even if the organ tone once again hurts it. But it's nowhere near perfect. For one, a bit of ambition wouldn't have hurt. For another, there are a couple songs I don't like here: the country-new wave hybrid "Creatures of Love" is awkward; the world music-flavored "Television Man" is endless; and there's nothing either here or there about "Give Me Back My Name". Plus there are some moronic keyboards. Oh well, it's a good fun time, exactly what it was intended to be. So hey. Can't complain too much. It's just that it's nowhere near Remain in Light.

I can't imagine why other TH fans don't love this album as much as I do. From the cover by Rev. Howard Finster to the classic "Walk It Down," the "Little Creatures" album is everything it should be. Irony lives.